Hot Off the Press

Leifeld Metal Spinning Expands

Monday, August 09, 2004

Leifeld Metal Spinning, GmbH, Ahlen, Germany, has taken over the complete product lines of Leico. Leifeld USA Metal Spinning, Inc., Colorado Springs, CO, is the Leifeld U.S. subsidiary.
To develop this new business, Leifeld in Germany has appointed Werner Hütter as managing director of the flow forming division and Benedikt Nillies as head of design for the spinning, flow forming and profiling technology departments.
For more, visit www.leifeldspinning.com.

Olson Int. to Add 600-ton Straightside Press

Friday, August 06, 2004

Olson International, Ltd., Lombard, IL, is adding a new 600-ton straightside press, allowing to serve industry needs for larger parts, according to company officials. The press is scheduled to go online in September. Currently, Olsen’s largest press is 400 tons with a 120-in. bed size—three of these at the Lombard plant.
“The future is in doing more value-added in the dies and offering a more cost-effective product and service to our customer,” says Time Gleason, Olson president. “(With larger presses,) we are able to consolidate tapping, staking and riveting operations into the progressive die, providing a driver to cost savings on high-volume products.”
In addition, reports Gleason, Olson hopes to expand its core competencies to more comprehensive parts that require larger press tonnage and bed size.

New Roof-Stampings Plant on the in Kentucky

Thursday, August 05, 2004

Automotive aftermarket company Webasto Product North America (WPNA) will invest $14 million in a new stamping plant scheduled to open later this year in Murray, KY, according to a recent article in Automotive Industries, for production of roof stampings for Ford and GM. WPNA, with a new headquarters and technical center in Fenton, MI, is a subsidiary of Webasto AG, Stockdorf, Germany. This year, WPNA, a leading supplier of open-roof systems, celebrates its 30-yr. anniversary of doing business in North America.